ASA U15 TEAM CROWNED U.S. FUTSAL NATIONAL CHAMPIONS

U.S. Futsal’s National Championship event came to a close on Sunday as Alexandria Soccer Association’s (ASA) U15 Boys Futsal ID team hoisted the title. The USFF National tournament held in San Jose, California, began last Thursday with championship matches concluding the weekend.

Youth Soccer News: Alexandria Soccer Association’s (ASA) U15 Boys Futsal ID team were crowned U.S. Futsal National Champions Sunday evening. ASA’s team won all three of their tightly contested group stage games to advance to the semifinals on Sunday morning.

“We knew the competition was going to be some of the best in the country. Group stage proved to be challenging, but the level we saw in our semifinal match against FWB (Futsal Without Borders) was by far the best futsal team we have played,” said head coach Will Hanna.

“We did a little bit of scouting once we arrived and made some minor tactical adjustments in the semifinals and ended up switching our formation in the final game; however, our overall plan and objectives remained the same,” said Hanna. “I’m proud of the boys for sticking to the plan and trusting their teammates and the coaching staff.”

The team won their semifinal game 3-2 against a challenging Futsal Without Borders team from Silicon Valley, California.

The semifinal win advanced the U15 Boys to the National Championship game against Knowens-Pearson.

At the end of regulation, the game was tied 5-5, forcing overtime. Alexandria scored early in the extra period to take a 6-5 lead and hold on for the win.

ASA’s journey to the National Championship began last November. The team secured their spot in the National Tournament after winning the Northeast Regional Finals, held in New Jersey, in February.

“This has been an unbelievable journey,” said Hanna. “Our boys worked so hard leading up to the tournament. They learned new concepts and became a disciplined team. It feels amazing and incredibly rewarding to be national champions. Words don’t describe how proud I am of these guys.”

The support of the Alexandria community throughout this journey has been unmatched. Our ASA family and the community at large provided fundraising support to make this journey for our boys possible. The team is sponsored by Onelife Fitness who provided practice space as well as uniforms for the team.

The futsal team is coached by Hanna, assisted by Peja Radivojevic and managed by Drew Dietrich. ASA’s Futsal program director is Chris Arnold.

The roster of seven play in ASA’s Academy program as well as the Futsal ID program. The players are Jairo Guevara, Andrew Dietrich, Sam Thompson, Matthew Castillo, Thanos Androus, Jose Alvarado, Dylan Albarracin and Alex Temoshok.

“Next we’re looking to get our guys to a National ID day to get them an opportunity on the national futsal team,” said Hanna. “These boys can play and it’s our goal to get them to the highest level possible.”

Chris Rael is a reporter for GoalNation and covers youth and adult soccer.
A multimedia artist whose hobbies include camping, traveling and playing football as much as possible. Chris is based in Rotterdam, Netherlands.